Mystery spinner Varun Chakaravarthy vindicated his selection with a maiden five-wicket haul, which helped India beat New Zealand by 44 runs in a Group A clash between two sides that had already made the last four of the Champions Trophy. Even former India cricketer Sachin Tendulkar was blown away by Varun’s bowling, but there was one other performance, that did not go unnoticed, but not for the India legend.
Electing to field, New Zealand restricted India to 249/9, with Matt Henry (5/42) leading their superb bowling display, which was backed up by their characteristic sharp catching.
In response from the Kiwi batters, New Zealand did back themselves for the win, especially amid a classy 81 from Kane Williamson. But the spinners choked the run-scoring through the middle overs on a tired Dubai track, with Varun dictating the terms with his 5 for 42, as the tweakers collectively picked up nine of the 10 wickets in India’s third-straight win in the 2025 Champions Trophy.
However, for Sachin, there was one other performance that mattered. In his social media post on Sunday night, the former India opener did not forget to compliment Shreyas Iyer’s valiant knock of 79, which saw India bounce back from a top-order collapse, en route to posting the target of 250.
“Shreyas Iyer played an important innings, and Varun Chakaravarthy’s spell made sure India stayed ahead. A good team win!
‘I did feel nervous in the initial stages…’
On a slow, low Dubai surface, India took the call of substituting pacer Harshit Rana with Varun, and the spinner made an immediate impact in his first match of the tournament that earned him the player-of-the-match award. His 5 for 42 was the second-best bowling figure by an Indian in the Champions Trophy and also the second-best figure on debut in the ICC tournament. Having picked up a five-wicket haul in just his second appearance in the format, it became the quickest by an Indian bowler in ODIs. The previous instance was Stuart Binny, who picked 6/4 against Bangladesh in Mirpur in 2014 in his third appearance.
